Rocking apparatus



Feb. 24. 1925. 1,527,916 v o. PONTIUS ROCKING APPARATUS Filed Feb 27, 1924' 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fnven [or @WM Z per: A

Feb. 24. 1925. 1,527,916

- o. PONTIUS ROCKING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 27, 1924 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 24, 1925.

- oswxm romws, OF "MI'JNIdig-GERMANY.

noekme simmers.

To all-"167mm it may come-1 41;;

Be it known that I,"OsWALU PNTInsQ- a eitizen of Germany, fesiding at M-nnioh G-e1n1eny, have invented "Certain new and usefellniprovenqents in 'Roeking Appatrttus,

which the renewing is *a specifiation. 'My invention '1'"elates to v ppziratiisfor zi-l'i niseinent or "exercise, of *the kind which j is freqnentlyfembodied in the tem of e f-0y horse? mounted on rockers, 'zt nd" is then called "a rocking horse. In referring to 'niy invention sis "relating to =1=oekn1g horses hnd 'likenpparatus I d'o-nnt, liowVeVer,'- me'an to convey that the 1 seat on the roekers is (nec- =ess'arily in the form of *a horse ioi' Tot-her animal. *inclii de in *this --c1esignation=en {zipparzitusflizivingn sezit mounted on roekers for the purpose of amiise m'ent' or exercise;

The object of my invent-ionais to provide an efficient; "appert'ttnsl'of L this} kind which is Capable of loeoin'oti'on, in addition to making, and towhfch locomotion may be imperted by the not of ro'elrin'g. Y Y

v Roekinghorses "hav *heretofore "be'en de- "signed with this object in Vi'whbiit 'Wit'hoiit securing s'zitis'fato'ry' 'rsri-lts. The nearest approach f to success has, I believe, .been attained by having oomparzitivelylarge levers pivoted "to the rockers, so that in the onrse of therockinginovemeiitfith eselevers engage the g i'ion'nd zind impart "propulsion. but .the mechanism is nois y and the locornotion proceeds only in "eibinfat "st'ps. llf a series 04; snnill levers is substitnted f t'oi' the f large levers, theinovem'ent is still aecompanied 'hy "noise "and by abrupt e'r'ks "'vthieh 'damage 'the fioorkni'd may he"injnrions to 'a child using thenpp'aratus.

My invention overcomes these di tficulties til by means "fwhioh are not only fhighlyisatisfactory in their *ffeot but are-also Very sini ile. l ittta''h "to each rocker "a s 'ri'es of rollers haVingFtiead pex-eons -of subs -antielly fspirel shz'iiqe, and these r'ollers ca e tlifeztpljttfiitfisf intheeotirseof tlie rock- .ing movements, to roll Eeven'lyand smoothl elon-g the fine 13 steering or deflection also heing profifidetl for, by lentting the rollers on one "or the other side temporarily out of action, it ich rne'y, for-exanfple, 1be* done hy pulling ejline like a rein. Both "forward and warmed .pulsio'n ai" 'pessiljl'e," i f the spinal "tread ei tionse-"re dn pli'eattl.

nexed dinwings, showin 'wjl'nfc h lt s embodied as a rock ng horse.

The inventien' is illnstratedfiin the an- Fig. '1 is en 1 'eievat-ien 6f the ap aratus,

-were genera1 ppincipqe en whieh the rollers are designed, zi ritl Fi g-s. 6 Ttjo "-8 illustrate (diagrammatically "the zieti 'on ofone' of th'ei rollers.

'- the rocker's P oi: the apparatus have series 'of reller-s R ivoted thereto, for limited r0- tzitionf the rollers projeetingloelow' the bott om edges'of the roliers. These rollers are {as -stated, of a f'pgrt io'nla'r kind, as *regards illustrated, II will d n more '-'generally with the desig n, arrangement and v fn-nction of the rollers whieh 'I' use 1n m invention.

'lFjhese rol-le'rs innst, as stated, be capable ofpaitial 'rotatio'n, and are held in'a normal fipfisitioli ofrest e'ither by gr'avity or by some auxiliary de'vlce,' for 'e'Xa'niplesprln gs, or by gravity zissisted by soine such device. Norinzill'ythjey oc'e upyth is positio'n of res; when an exam le in raised from the -gronndfbv the 'rookers.

Their function is to engage the ground when the rockers 'desclen-d, end then under the thriist 1 of the rockers to perform a partial rot'ation whereby the apparatus is propelled. When the rocker "rise again; the "rollers 're- "tnrn to "positionjo'f rest. The arcing"- of the "Trollers in eaoh seri'es clpe'n'ds in part on'the size selected and on the curvature 'of the makers, whiiehnity wary {the general p'rin- 2 cipl'e on which the "s acing-should j be based to ohte'in "good results Will become apparent from the followinydesc'riptien.

In iegard to the shape ef "the rollers, I willnow'refeflo the Figs.- 4"a'nd 5. In 4:

the' segnient 0 and 'theonter broken line,

' define the outline of 'a roller, which is symmetrical in relation to a line a-A-e passalso a modification in which only a portion of this outline is incorporated in the roller as will be explained hereinafter. For propulsion in one direction, only a portion of the outline comes into operation, namely the segment a, c. In a given position of the rocker, approximately as shown in Fig. 6, the point a is on the ground, and when the rocker descends the segment a 0 rolls on the ground, like a segment of a wheel, as shown in Fig. 7. The mounting and shape of the roller are such that in the course of the whole movement the line connecting the axis A to the point of contact with the ground is never vertical, but makes with the vertical an angle which remains substantially constant during the rolling movement. This angle as must be suficiently large to give the torque required to make the roller roll, but must not be so large as to allow the roller to slip. In this respect the nature of the roller surface is, of course, a factor, in which due regard is had in selecting the material and fashioning the roller.

A particularly suitable shape for the roller is given by a portion of what is known as a logarithmic spiral. With a curve of this kind, such as shown at f in Fig. 5, there is a constant angle 00 between the vertical A-C and the line connecting A with the point of contact B with the ground. Continuing the logarithmic curve upwards from c, the curve turns spirally inwards through (Z towards the axis A, but for the example f construction shown in Figs. 6 to 8 only the part a-d, or therea'bouts, is incorporated in the roller, (Z being given by the tan gent a(Z. In Fig. e the curve is designed for an angle 00 of 15, and the operative segment is not a perfect spiral. To make a symmetrical roller I add the complementary outline 5 (Fig. 4) and round off the junction, as at lVith a symmetrical roller the direction of propulsion can be reversed by altering the position of rest of the roller, and an example of means for so doing will be described hereinafter with reference to Figs. 1 to 3.

With unsyn'imetrical or mutilated rollers the propulsion is confined in one direction, and with such rollers I may dispense with springs for restoring them to position of rest, the rollers being so shaped or weighted that they return to position of rest by gravity.

In either case the propulsion is smooth and even, and differs largely from the jerky propulsion obtained by the use of levers as hereinbefore referred to.

Before proceeding to detailed description of a specific example of the mechanism, 1 will set forth briefly the theoretical principles on which the method of propulsion is based.

The propulsion is induced by the fact that at each descent of an elevated portion of the rocker (Figs. 6 to 8) the axis A of each descending roller travels in an inclined plane 0, the apparatus as a whole making a corresponding downward and forward movement. The operative part of each roller may be regarded as an inclined plane bent round the axis. If the curve a, I), c, d be de veloped as a straight line, and perpendiculars are erected at a, b, c and (Z, equal to a, A, Z), A, 0, A, and (ZA, these perpendiculars will terminate in a straight line inclined to aZ ccZ, and the roller-axis will. move down this line.

Referring to Figs. 6 to 8, when the raised left hand portion of the rocker P descends, and a roller R, still in its normal position of rest, touches the ground, the downward thrust of the rocker tends to shorten the distance between the roller axis and the ground. With a suitably selected angle X the friction with the ground is too great to allow the roller to slip, hence the roller axis must travel forwards and downwards, while the roller rolls on its tread, carrying the apparatus forward. In Figs. 7 and 8 the broken lines 0 represent the paths through which the roller axis travels from the position shown in Fig. 6, while the roller is rotating to the new positions shown in Figs. 7 and 8 respectively. In these figures the broken outlines of the rocker illustrate the conditions arising when the rearward portion of the rocker descends.

It will be understood that for maintaining substantial continuity of propulsion the spacing of the rollers in series must be such that when the propulsive effect of one roller is spent the propulsion is taken up, or cont-inued, by the next roller, in front or rear.

To prevent friction between the ground and those portions of the rockers which are in contact with the ground in front of, or behind, the two rollers in operation for propelling the apparatus, I .may depart from the spiral shape, as regards the upper portion of the rollers, and substitute a circular segment 0" as shown in Fig. 4, between the segment (4-5-0, and the segment g. Resting on this circular portion, after the spiral tread has performed its oflice, the apparatus is able to roll along with very little friction while the next roller is in operation for propelling it. Alternatively I may provide additional ground rollers, which may be small, and are entirely circular, these being disposed in the intervals between the propelling rollers, or side by side therewith.

I will now describe in detail the specific example shown in Figs. 1 to 3, but desire to point out that many variations of the mechanism may be made without departing from the principle of the invention.

As shown in Fig. 1, the rockers P are provided in pairs, one pair at each side, each ti-0n of therocker-"members on" eachsi'de is solely or principally for tlie-gpurpose oi 'prolVit'h "a' single rockerineniber there would, in the absence (iflSOll'lG special c'ontrivance or *ofunaking the axle extend acrossvtoithe other "side, he only one end hearing 2 for the axle, and 3 I prefer the double "bearings'ho'wn,

'fcr reaso'ns'o'f strength andfdurability. On

the inside ot one of j the rocker me nbers, there 1 1s *provided .ad aoe'nt to' each =-roller a s-nialLlever 3,*rota'talile oniajpivoty and this T lever is "connected to the up'per *part" of the roller 'by an elastic "member, such as the spring 5, an'd a cord 6. "The lever ha's t-Wo p eotions 8 and 9, -'the former serving for the attachment of the elastic member; and

the latter being directed outwards, above thetop edge of; the TOC'lESI' IHGmbBI, so --that it limits Y the downward ==swing of the lever. l

The e lastici ineinloer teirc ls' -toholc'l the roller in the'pro per normal" positionof-rest, and to restore it to that position after rotation. The lever can i be rotated into two waiter-nati-ve positions, one "of ivh'ich is "shown ;by y

Y broken lines in 5 2, and in -n-1ov-ing";fro1n one to the 'other it 1noves also the roller. The levers" may be con'nected to each other by means ota cord;attached totheir proj-eetions '8,'--so that by pulling the cord they can be 'roc-ke'dcollectively from "-one positioirto th'e other. By sorockingthe levers "3, different-portions ofthe rollersR are placed in 'posi-tion to engage the 'groundyand =t-he direction or propulsion'i-is thu-s reversed. A cord'lOis provided, Witlra loop fo'rm-ing reins for the riderptwo lengthsof-thiscord passingdownwar'ds *fro-I-n 't-he -horse s bit to eyes near *the 'frontends of the rockers, whence each-length of cord extcn'ds 'frear- Wards along the respectivei-rooke-i to "a coiled springor equivalent device not shown, attached to the rocker, the purpose of the springor-equivalent device being to 'al'lovv I of moving-the =cord lo-ngitutlinally by pulling the reins. Each of the rollers ll/has *astud l1 "connect-ed by a cord 12 to "the cord 10*, so that by pulling oneofthereinsitheF-rollers "onone 'side eanhewotated partly to' p-lace thecircular portions, of=their circumferences in position to engage the ground. When this is done the rollers on that side-are inoperative for propulsion, "whereasthose on "tracks. 'The vendsof'thefcor'd 10 -ma'yibe joined 'together, between the 'two pairs of rockers, preferably in a manner which ena-loles them to be disconnected easily and modifications oiixdetail can be made, and

{that the invention can be embodied inrnany "fornis, ranging from a simple' apparatus' for fSlo-Winovement i in one direction only to an elaborate-"apparatus capable of 1 travelling "forwards or *back wards at a substantial speed and executed with refinements 'such :as

ball or roller bearings and rubber tyres on the-rollers.

No substantial amount o'f energy is -"-re- --=quired for the purposes of 1')ropuls'ion. The Lctionrat the bearings is sinall, ,and inay indact be practically eliminated "by using ball-or roller bearings,-and the force required to extend the -sp'rings 5, if such springs are used, is =a'lso'sli'gl1t', because these spri gs need not befpower-fu-l; "-VV-ith nonsymmetrical rollers thesprings can *be disoen'sedwvith, as alreaic'l y stated. The "progressive i inoti'on is f f'coniparatively even and '-noiseless 'because'the rollers do not strike the ground perpendicularly, hut infringe f upon it atan acute" anglefso that even Without- --rubber tyres the-action is "nearly noiseless if the parts are ni'ade and 5 assembled with "reasonable preci-sion and care "I C'l&lH1i'" 1. Arocking lro'rseor-other 'rockin'g appa'-rat-us' corriprisingin eombinauoaa rocker and rollers-d-isposed; iirline along said rocker so as to normally protrude-beloW -the latter,

said rollers having-tread portions confor1ning approximately to spiral curves and *being arranged to {roll with ftheir tread *port-ion-s onthe ground,\vhen the apparatus is rocketL'antl-to returnto their norn'ial "posh lien, when "lifted from the ground.

' "2. A'Toclting'horseo-r other rocking apparat'us comprising in -c'onibi1ration, a pair {of rockers and rollers disposed in line along said rockers, so as \to -"nor1nally protrude "below "the latter, said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being arranged to roll' with" their tread portions on the ground, ivl'ienthe apparatus 'i's rocked, and to return to their normal position, I when lifted from the "ground 3. A rockin-g "horse or other rockingapp aratus comprising in "conibination, a roeker and rollers disposed in linealongsaidiroeker, so as to n orin'ally protrude belo'w the latter, said 'rollers'having tread 'vportio'ns conforming approximately to spirahcurvesand being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll With their tread portions on the ground, When the and rollers disposed in line along said rocker,

so as to normally protrude below the latter,

- said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground and means for adjusting said rollers in two alternative positions of rest.

5. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter, said rollers having each two tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground.

6. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter,

said rollers having each two tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground and means for adjusting said rollers in two alternative positions of rest.

7. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising'in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter,

said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground and a lever elastically connected to each roller and adapted to be rocked into two alternative positions of rest.

8. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter, said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground, a lever elastically connected to each 65 roller and adapted to be rocked into two al ternative positions of rest and means for collectively rocking the levers of a plurality of rockers.

9. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter, said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged to roll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground, a lever elastically connected to each roller and adapted to be rocked into two alternative positions of rest, means for collectively rocking the levers of a plurality of rockers and means for collectively rotating a plurality of rollers so as to move their spiral tread portions out of contact with the ground.

10; A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker and rollers disposed in line along said rocker so as to normally protrude below the latter, said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and be ing symmetrical in relation to a line taken through their axes and arranged toroll with their tread portions on the ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground, a lever elastically connected to each roller and adapted to be rocked into two alternative positions of rest, means for collectively rocking the levers of a plurality of rockers and rein-like means for collectively rotating a plurality of rollers so as to move their spiral tread portions out of contact with the ground.

11. A rocking horse or other rocking apparatus comprising in combination, a rocker in two parallel parts and rollers disposed 0 in. line intermediate said parts, so as to normally protrude below the latter, said rollers having tread portions conforming approximately to spiral curves and being arranged to roll with their tread portions on the 115 ground, when the apparatus is rocked, and to return to their normal position, when lifted from the ground.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature OSVJALD PONTIUS,

A. DE Soro. 

